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Sunday, October 30, 2016

Inferno doesn't light the box office on fire

Movie Title: Inferno

Grade: B

Rating: PG-13, 121 minutes

In a Nutshell: I really enjoyed Dan Brown’s book a few
years ago when I read it. Yeah, I know…it’s
not high-brow literature, but more of a guilty pleasure. It has been 10 years since the last Dan Brown
movie and, unfortunately, this one is getting mediocre reviews like that last
two action films in the series.

After the rolling credits, right before the words “Columbia
Pictures,” it says in bold letters, “Be Moved.”
You might or might not.

Uplifting theme:

Cerca
trova. Seek and find.

The intriguing
question asked is: “If you could flip a switch, half of the population
dies, or if you don’t do it, mankind will be extinct in 100 years…what
would you do?”

“Things
fall apart if you don’t look after them.” – Robert

“The
darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their
neutrality in times of moral crisis.” – Dante Alighieri

Create
your life. Don’t let life pull you
apart from the one you love, like Dante and Beatrice and two other people
in the movie (NO spoiler alert.)

Things I liked:

Who
doesn’t love Tom Hanks? What was up
with his hair in this movie though?

I LOVE
Italy. I was in Florence and Venice just a
couple of years ago. We walked right by Dante’s actual house in Florence. One thing I love about the Dan Brown
books and movies is that you get to traipse around Europe. While bullets fly around Tom
Hanks, it’s fun to do some sightseeing. The set piece in Istanbul is stunning.

Felicity
Jones does all of the same stunts Tom Hanks does, but in high heels. I’m excited to see her in the upcoming
Star Wars movie “Rogue One.” She’s
always great in everything.

Things I didn’t like:

If you
haven’t read the book, you’ll probably be confused for the first 30
minutes. The movie starts with a
mixture of reality and visions, making it difficult for even fans of the
book to know what’s going on.

The
time stamp in various scenes lends a sense of urgency, but the timing of
events are pretty unrealistic.

One of
the most compelling things about the character Robert Langdon is his
ability to solve complex puzzles.
Unfortunately, he spends the majority of the movie experiencing
amnesia and hallucinations, so that people have to tell him what’s happening, making the
unraveling of the mystery less than satisfying.

It
takes a really long time for Felicity Jones’ character to have a reason for
her to be with Tom Hanks’ character.

The
script writing definitely doesn’t provide the details that the book does. There were some inconsistencies and plot holes that were frustrating.

Interesting lines:

“Maybe
pain can save us.” – Bertrand Zobrist

“Mankind
is its own cancer.” – Bertrand

“There’s
always a way out.” – Robert

“I’m
not afraid to act, but doing nothing terrifies me.” – Sienna

“Beauty
awakens the soul to act.” – Dante

“The
most interesting things happen in doorways.” – Robert

“Genius
doesn’t come with extra rights.” – Robert

Funny lines:

“Weird
kid. Did I say that out loud?” – Robert

“I’m
sorry. I’m not like this.” – Robert

“You kind of are.” – Sienna Brooks

“I
studied Dante when I was younger.” – Sienna

“Probably in Kindergarten.” –
Robert

“Young
people are disappointing.” – Harry Sims (Irrfan Khan)

Tips for
parents:

There
is a lot of blood, violence, death, beating, stabbing, and scary images.